No end in sight
For four years, extortion and killings have gone on in Karachi. Several visits by the president, prime minister, and interior minister aimed at restoring peace and respect for the law have failed to achieve anything except an occasional temporary lull. Will the lecture imparted to coalition partners on Tuesday by Zardari achieve anything more than that? Many think the situation is not likely to change as long as political parties continue to make unprincipled alliances to achieve short terms gains.
What one sees happening is a continuous turf war between the three allies in the ruling coalition which has encouraged the sectarian outfits also to pursue their nefarious agenda. The rider by the president “If the three political parties join hands”, only indicates a realisation that the allies remain divided as before. The gross failure on the part of the ruling coalition to restore peace has led some to conclude that the coalition is in fact a part rather than a solution of the problem. What Rehman Malik has said about the PPP, MQM and ANP being all involved in extortion would further strengthen the perception.
Soon after the meeting, two of the partners gave vent to their particular grievances indicating the gulf that continues to divide them and underlining the fact that sharp political differences are the real cause behind violence. An MQM spokesman told reporters that his party demanded immediate holding of the local body elections. President of Sindh ANP maintained on the other hand that peace could not be established in the city till fresh constituencies are made on the basis of a new census. This, however, is no more on the government’s agenda. The president wants the coordination committee comprising the representatives of the three allies to get those apprehended identified and their political links publicised on media. Most people who read newspapers already know which party introduced extortion in Karachi or initiated violence in politics. Lists of target killers have been published along with their party affiliation. Another list of the sort would hardly change the situation on ground. If anything can, it would be a decision to pursue political goals peacefully. But are the allies willing to do now what they have shunned so far?
